Technological Field
The described technology generally relates to a method for adjusting parameters of at least orientation and aperture of an angular viewing/masking sector of an environment scanning device, integrated into a mission system.
Description of the Related Technology
Such a system may be associated with a carrier, such as an aircraft, or any other type of carrier.
The described technology also generally relates to an adjusting device and an operator terminal for a corresponding viewing system.
More particularly, the described technology generally relates to processes and methods for man/machine interaction for example adapted to the configuration of mission systems in difficult and restrictive environments, for example in the airport or naval field.
These environments are in fact characterized by significant movements of the wearer, vibrations, relatively high noise, limited brightness, etc., i.e., conditions making the use the systems fairly difficult and delicate and requiring considerable vigilance from the operator.
Such a device for scanning the environment in such a mission system for example includes a radar associated with the carrier and then also includes an operator terminal further comprising a display capability for displaying information and an adjusting capability for adjusting parameters, in particular for orientation and aperture of an angular viewing/masking sector thereof.
The sector is for example the sector that is scanned or, on the contrary, not scanned by the radar beam of an aircraft.
Of course, other applications may be considered.
This angular viewing/masking sector of such a scanning device is generally a sector whose central part is geocentered, on the position of the carrier for which one wishes to depict a scanning zone.
This scanning zone may be limited by a distance, a direction and an aperture angle, for example around an aircraft.
Practically speaking, this sector may for example relate to a scanning sector or a masking sector of the radar, determined by an operator as a function of the needs of the mission using a corresponding adjusting capability provided to the operator in the corresponding terminal.
In a terminal of the state of the art, the adjusting capability for adjusting the orientation and aperture parameters of this angular sector for example comprise an adjusting panel or table including a portion displaying the orientation of the angular sector for example associated with buttons or touch-sensitive interaction zones with an operator, allowing the operator to adjust the orientation of that sector by incrementing/decrementing the displayed orientation angle.
The adjusting panel or table of that terminal of the state of the art also includes another display portion for the aperture of the angular sector.
That other display portion is also associated with buttons or touch-sensitive interaction zones with the operator, allowing the latter to adjust that aperture here again by incrementing/decrementing the displayed value using the control capability provided to him.
A button or a touch-sensitive interaction zone with the operator to validate the new entered parameters may also be provided on this table or panel of the terminal to end the adjusting operations.
One can, however, see that such a structure has a certain number of drawbacks inasmuch as the adjustment of the parameters requires a large number of interactions between the operator and the terminal and sustained attention by the operator.
These problems become even more significant when the type of mission systems in question may be integrated, as previously indicated, into carriers subject to very strong outside constraints, which disrupts the operator accordingly.
Another problem lies in the fact that the information display capability and the adjusting capability may be remote from one another, which does not make it easier to perceive the adjustments done by the operator.